Content provided by APO Group. CNBC Africa provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers and does not edit the articles it publishes. CNBC Africa is not responsible for the content provided by APO Group.

Teams competing in Monaco for the final places available at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will be boosted by confirmation that fans will be able to attend the event on 19-20 June.

 	Match schedule announced for final Olympic qualification event towards Tokyo 2020 	Stade Louis II in Monaco to host up to 5,000 rugby fans on 19-20 June, 2021 	Tickets start at 10 euros per day and go on sale today at Monaco-rugby.com 	The revised format for the men’s competition will see two games played on Friday 18 June to maintain player welfare guidelines for World Rugby sevens tournaments 	Media and photographers interested in covering the event can request an accreditation by emailing mbergesi@gouv.mc 
Organisers have confirmed that 5,000 fans will be able to watch all the action from the second and third days of competition inside the iconic Stade Louis II, subject to maintenance of the current covid environment. Fans will be required to wear face masks and respect social distancing.
The boost comes on the day that World Rugby confirmed the match schedule for the competition which will feature 12 women’s and 10 men’s teams all vying to achieve the ultimate prize of securing the remaining two women’s and one men’s team places for Olympic rugby sevens in Tokyo, which will take place on 26-31 July, 2021 at Tokyo Stadium.
The women’s competition will feature Argentina, Colombia, France, Hong Kong, Jamaica, Kazakhstan, Madagascar, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Russia, Samoa and Tunisia. The men’s tournament will involve Chile, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Jamaica, Mexico, Samoa, Tonga, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
View World Rugby Sevens Repechage pools and match schedule >> https://bit.ly/2QYS1b0
While the action kicks off on Friday 18 June at 18:00 local time with Zimbabwe versus Mexico being the first of two men&#39;s matches that evening, fans are invited to join the festivities in stadium for a packed programme of men&#39;s and women&#39;s matches on day two and three culminating in the two women&#39;s finals and the one men&#39;s final on Sunday evening.
The match schedule has been developed with player welfare at heart. No team will have more than three games in each day, resulting in the two games being organised on Friday evening, accommodating the reduction to 10 teams in the men’s competition. Due to late kick-off times, the two Friday games will be played behind closed doors.
World Rugby Chief Executive Alan Gilpin said: “With Tokyo 2020 less than three months away, the rugby family is looking forward to what promises to be a special sevens tournament that personifies the togetherness, camaraderie and optimism that characterises these remarkable Olympic Games.
“The Monaco repechage is also symbolic in its own way – a reflection and celebration of sevens international re-emergence from the unprecedented challenges that society and sports people have faced. I know that these players are excited to be representing their nations with the opportunity of qualification for the pinnacle of sevens – the Olympic Games.
“It will be extra special that they get to showcase their skills in front of fans. I would like to thank their Serene Highnesses and the Monegasque Rugby Union for embracing our event and providing the players with the perfect platform to challenge for Tokyo 2020 qualification.”
TICKETING
Online ticketing for the World Rugby Sevens Repechage will open this Friday 28 May at www.Monaco-rugby.com. From 8 June, Rugby fans will also be able to buy tickets directly in Monaco at the ticket offices located at the Stade Louis II’s entrance. (see opening times below)
 	Tuesday to Friday 10:00 – 14:00 and 16:00 – 19:00 	Saturday 12 June: 10:00 – 13:00 	Saturday 19 June: 08.30 – 16:00 	Sunday 20 June: 10:00 – 16:00 
Tickets will start at 10€ / fan / day with a discounted price of 5€ available for Monaco students and FFR licence holders. Fan travelling to Monaco to watch the action will need to present a negative PCR test, less than 72 hours old, upon their entrance in the Monaco Principality (except for French residents living in the 06 and 83 departments). Fans can find all the measures put in place in the Monaco Principality on the following link: www.covid19.mc
For any ticketing related enquiries, please contact billetterie@monaco-rugby.com
MEDIA INFORMATION
Media and photographers interested in covering the event in Monaco can request an accreditation by emailing Margot Bergesi at mbergesi@gouv.mc.
No contact with players will be allowed during the Tournament, except for certain approved media who will be allowed access to the mixed zone (second stand A) with confirmation of a negative PCR test taken no earlier than 72 hours prior to the event.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Rugby.
Media Contact: Rugby@APO-opa.com
Media files

Monaco set to welcome fans for Olympic Games Sevens Repechage

Content provided by APO Group. CNBC Africa provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers and does not edit the articles it publishes. CNBC Africa is not responsible for the content provided by APO Group.

UNICEF received a new contribution of US$830,000 from the Government of Japan to support humanitarian response in regions affected by armed conflict in Niger.

This generous contribution will enable UNICEF to strengthen its support to the Government of Niger to provide lifesaving water, sanitation and hygiene services and supplies for children and their families affected by conflicts in the regions of Tillabery, Tahoua and Maradi, reaching an anticipated 18,000 people, more than half of them children.
&#8220;In already fragile host communities, the burden of forced displacement increases the vulnerability of children and communities and significantly affects their health, protection, nutrition and education. Increased access to safe water as well as hygiene and sanitation services is crucial to prevent outbreaks, including water-borne diseases or COVID-19 amongst displaced people and host communities&#8221;, explains Acting UNICEF Niger Representative Aboubacry Tall.
The funding provided will also help UNICEF and its partners strengthen existing real-time data collection and analysis systems in Tillabery region. UNICEF has set-up a data collection platform called RapidPro to help the Government and partners provide a timely, coordinated and multi-sectoral humanitarian response in regions facing recurrent population displacements and other humanitarian crises.
“As a mobile tech programming tool, RapidPro allows partners to gather accurate real-time information on vital areas such as education, water, hygiene and sanitation and child protection — even in remote and hard-to-reach places — and use that data to reach those most in need”, he says.  
Niger continues to face a combination of quick onset and protracted humanitarian crises that have been exacerbated by the impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Some 3.8 million people, including 2.1 million children, will need humanitarian assistance in 2021.
“We are deeply grateful for this additional support from Japan, which came at a critical time for the survival, development and protection of children in Niger” concludes Aboubacry Tall.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Media files

Japan supports UNICEF to accelerate humanitarian response in conflict-affected regions of Niger

Content provided by APO Group. CNBC Africa provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers and does not edit the articles it publishes. CNBC Africa is not responsible for the content provided by APO Group.

Partnership set to grow rugby for development and gender equality initiatives in Oceania and beyond; ChildFund becomes first-ever charity partner for the women’s edition of a Rugby World Cup; Rugby fans will have the opportunity to opt in to donate when purchasing match day tickets; Appointment builds on record-breaking success of the Rugby World Cup 2019 partnership in Japan where £2 million was pledged by rugby fans to support ChildFund’s rugby for development programmes and Typhoon Hagibis disaster relief; Rugby World Cup 2021 hosted in New Zealand set to take place 8 October-12 November, 2022 in Auckland and Whangārei.

World Rugby (www.World.rugby) has announced the appointment of international development agency ChildFund as the principal charity partner for Rugby World Cup 2021, playing in 2022, a first in the history of the premier women’s 15s event.
With a focus on gender equality initiatives, ChildFund works with partners, including Oceania Rugby, to provide vulnerable girls and women with opportunities to learn skills to overcome challenges and be active leaders in their communities. Rugby fans will have the opportunity to engage with and support the work of ChildFund Rugby, ChildFund’s dedicated rugby for development unit, via an opt in mechanism to donate when purchasing match day tickets, with funds raised through the partnership supporting the expansion of rugby for development programmes in Oceania.

World Rugby Chief Executive Alan Gilpin said: “We are delighted to be extending our impactful association with ChildFund, this time as principal charity partner for Rugby World Cup 2021. The tournament will showcase rugby’s unstoppable women as they compete at the highest level.

“Importantly, it will also generate an incredible legacy by supporting a new generation of female players and leaders in Pacific Island nations through ChildFund’s significant contribution to rugby for development programmes in the Oceania region.”

Through a ground-breaking partnership at RWC 2019, a record-breaking £2 million was pledged by rugby fans globally to ChildFund, providing more than 25,000 children from disadvantaged communities in Asia with the opportunity to take part in ChildFund’s Pass It Back programme across Asia, teaching life skills through rugby with the support of Asia Rugby.

Funds raised were also used to support local communities in Japan with the rebuilding effort following the devastation caused by Typhoon Hagibis during the tournament.

ChildFund Rugby’s development programmes not only promote the right to play in communities where children have little or no access to organised sport, but provide important learning opportunities around leadership, problem-solving, gender equality, relationships, conflict-resolution, and planning for the future.

With a strong focus on gender equality, a strategic objective shared by World Rugby, more than half of all participants and rugby leadership roles are female, challenging gender stereotypes.

ChildFund Alliance Chair Simon Whyte said: “ChildFund is excited to again be partnering with World Rugby to change children’s lives through sport.

“Over 31,000 children and young people have benefitted from their involvement in ChildFund’s rugby for development programmes, which are highly successful in providing critical learning opportunities for children facing significant challenges linked to poverty and inequality.

“As part of this, 6,000 children have participated in Reconnect, a COVID-19 early response initiative developed by ChildFund which supports positive responses among young people to the challenges of the pandemic.

“ChildFund’s rugby for development programmes also support global efforts to achieve gender equality, reduce inequality, and end gender-based violence, reflecting targets within the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”

ChildFund Ambassadors Honey Hireme-Smiler and Emily Chancellor, former and current New Zealand and Australian players, will be on opposing sides when the tournament commences. However, they are on the same team in recognising the importance of organised sport in girls’ and boys’ lives, particularly in disadvantaged communities.

Hireme-Smiler, former New Zealand Black Fern, said: “I am extremely passionate about supporting younger girls as this was how we were raised within our whanau (family). The ways in which ChildFund makes an impact on the lives of vulnerable children – whether through health and wellbeing, education, or sport – is so inspiring.”

Wallaroos player Emily Chancellor, who shared her rugby skills with children in Laos in 2019, added: “ChildFund Rugby’s development programmes are incredibly important for young people in developing communities, because they combine education with team sport. Learning through play is a really valuable way to build confidence and resilience.

“I’m also proud to support an initiative which has such a strong focus on gender equality and is creating an equal playing field for girls and boys alike.”

Funds raised during the tournament will allow ChildFund Rugby to expand its contribution to rugby for development programmes for children and young people in Oceania, support female leadership initiatives, and support the creation of strong rugby women’s networks around the globe.

 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Rugby.
For more information, visit www.ChildFundRugby.org
Media Contact: Douglas.Langley@worldrugby.org +353 87 067 8599
Rugby@APO-opa.com
Media files

ChildFund appointed principal charity partner for Rugby World Cup 2021 to support the next generation of unstoppable women in rugby

(Reuters) &#8211; A Japanese bulk carrier that ran aground on a reef in Mauritius last month threatening a marine ecological disaster around the Indian Ocean island has broken apart, authorities said on Saturday.



The condition of the MV Wakashio was worsening early on Saturday and it split by the afternoon, the Mauritius National Crisis Committee said.



“At around 4.30pm, a major detachment of the vessel’s forward section was observed,” it said in a statement. “On the basis of the experts’ advice, the towing plan is being implemented.”



The vessel struck a coral reef on July 25, spilling about 1,000 tonnes of fuel oil and endangering corals, fish and other marine life in what some scientists have called the country’s worst ecological disaster.



On Friday, some residual oil from the ship leaked into the ocean, Mauritius Marine Conservation Society President Jacqueline Sauzier told Reuters on Saturday morning.



Authorities deployed booms on Saturday to help with oil absorption around the vessel.



The Crisis Committee said special attention was being given to sensitive sites such as the Blue Bay Marine Park, Ile aux Aigrettes and the Pointe D’Esny National Ramsar Site.



The weather is expected to deteriorate over the next few days with waves of up to 4.5 metres (15 feet), authorities said.



Most of the oil from the vessels have been pumped out, the Mauritian government said on Thursday, but there was still 166 tonnes of fuel oil inside and authorities were working to remove it.



Japanese Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said on Saturday Tokyo planned to send a team of officials from the ministry and other specialists to assess the damage. The MV Wakashio is owned by Japan’s Nagashiki Shipping and chartered by Mitsui OSK Lines.



Scientists say the full impact of the spill is still unfolding, but the damage could affect Mauritius and its tourism-dependent economy for decades.



Removing the ship is likely to take months. Former colonial power France has said it will assist with the cleanup.

Op-Ed: Tourism sector in Mauritius devastated by COVID-19

Japanese ship involved in Mauritius oil spill breaks apart

Report by William Feuer



Key Points



<ul><li>COVID-19 cases surpassed 200,000 worldwide on Wednesday as the new coronavirus continues to spread outside of China, the original epicenter of the outbreak.</li></ul>



<ul><li>The total number of cases now stands at 201,436 as of 7:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday, according to data compiled by John Hopkins.</li></ul>



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COVID-19 cases surpassed 200,000 worldwide on Wednesday as the new coronavirus continues to spread outside of China, the original epicenter of the outbreak.



The total number of cases now stands at 201,436&nbsp;as of 7:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday, according to data compiled by John Hopkins. The virus emerged in Wuhan, China in December. It has since spread to most countries around the world, according to the World Health Organization.



Almost half of all cases in the world are in China, but the virus, known as COVID-19, has quickly spread across borders. Last week, the WHO declared that Europe had become the new epicenter of the virus.



“More cases are now being reported [in Europe] every day than were reported in China at the height of its epidemic,” WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.



Italy, where officials have implemented a nationwide lockdown, has reported more than 31,000 cases, according to JHU, and over 2,500 deaths. The virus has infected more than 16,000 people in Iran, JHU’s data shows, and over 13,000 in Spain.



On Jan. 20, four countries, China, Thailand, Japan and South Korea, had reported a total of 282 cases, most of which were in China, according to the WHO.



The WHO <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/11/who-declares-the-coronavirus-outbreak-a-global-pandemic.html">declared the virus a global pandemic last week</a>.



“In the past two weeks the number of cases outside China has increased thirteenfold and the number of affected countries has tripled,” Tedros said. “In the days and weeks ahead, we expect to see the number of cases, the number of deaths and the number of affected countries to climb even higher.”



The WHO has criticized responses by some countries for failing to communicate clearly with their population, not taking proactive containment measures and not committing politically to combat the virus.&nbsp;



“Some countries are struggling with a lack of capacity. Some countries are struggling with a lack of resources. Some countries are struggling with a lack of resolve,” Tedros said after declaring the virus a pandemic.



To curb the spread of the virus, governments across the world are closing schools, restricting travel and ordering people to remain in their homes.&nbsp;<a href="https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/countries_en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">European leaders</a>&nbsp;agreed Tuesday to close the European Union’s external borders for 30 days. Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump declared a similar travel ban on most European countries.



Italian officials locked down the entire country earlier this month, banning public gatherings, shuttering schools and closing businesses.



This article was first published on CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/18/worldwide-coronavirus-cases-top-200000-for-the-first-time.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/18/worldwide-coronavirus-cases-top-200000-for-the-first-time.html</a> and is republished with its permission.

Worldwide coronavirus cases top 200,000 for the first time

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Nigeria, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Senegal, Tunisia and now SA &#8211; the corononavirus is making inroads on the continent. CNBC Africa spoke to a SA athlete with hopes of taking part at this year’s Olympics in Japan about the impact of COVID-19.

Why this athlete won’t let COVID-19 derail her Olympic dreams

#TheHashtag: Billionaire Mark Cuban’s lessons for entrepreneurs & SA vs. Japan at #RWC2019

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Earlier this week, Japan will give Kenya nearly $860 million in concessional loans and grants for the construction of a bridge in Mombasa and other infrastructure projects to support an economic zone there. Economic Analyst Odhiambo Ramogi joins CNBC Africa for more.

Japan pledges $860mn in development aid for Kenya

TOKYO (Reuters) &#8211; Japan will offer enhanced trade insurance to boost private sector investment in Africa, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Wednesday as his country competes with rival China for influence in the resource-rich continent.



 “Let me make a promise,” Abe told the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) attended by a few dozen African leaders and representatives of international organisations such as the World Bank.



“The Japanese government will do its utmost so that our private-sector investment in Africa, which came to $20 billion over the past three years, will be expanded continuously,” Abe added.



The enhanced insurance would fully cover loans to African governments, their affiliated institutions or private companies buying Japanese goods for infrastructure projects in Africa, according to government briefing materials and a state-run firm offering trade insurance.



“For example, our cooperation with local financial institutions will create a new trade insurance that could cover 100% of your transactions,” Abe said in his speech.



He did not make a major funding announcement at the Tokyo meeting.



At the last TICAD conference in the Kenyan capital Nairobi in 2016, Japan pledged $30 billion in public and private support for infrastructure development, education and healthcare in Africa over three years.



Foreign investment in sub-Saharan Africa rose 13% last year to $32 billion, bucking a global downward trend and reversing two years of decline, according to a United Nations report published in June. [nL8N23K3T7]



Last September at a summit with African leaders in Beijing, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged $60 billion in financing for Africa and wrote off some debt for the continent’s poorer nations. [nL3N1VP28R]



Western critics say the Chinese funding is saddling the continent with unsustainable debt, but Beijing denies it is engaging in “debt trap” diplomacy. [nL3N1VQ2CD]



Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; editing by Darren Schuettler

Here’s how Japan plans to drive Africa investment

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U.S and China have tentatively agreed to a trade war truce ahead of the G-20 summit scheduled to commence today in Osaka, Japan. Uchenna Minnis, Chief Market Analyst at Eagle Global Markets joins CNBC Africa to discuss expectations for the summit and for a focus on the global oil markets.

Tracking global market expectations from G20 summit

Arjun Kharpal
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/04/the-splinternet-an-internet-half-owned-by-china-and-the-us.html">The &#8216;splinternet&#8217;: How China and the US could divide the internet for the rest of the world</a>
<ul>
<li>The future could see Chinese and American apps and services dominate half of the internet each, leading to a split internet, according to Kaifu Lee, CEO of Sinovation Ventures.</li>
<li>Commentators have dubbed this the &#8220;splinternet.&#8221;</li>
<li>Lee also said that China could be ahead of the U.S. in artificial intelligence in five years.</li>
</ul>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/05100226/105713391-1548982472156gettyimages-1085462846.1910x1000.jpeg" alt="DLD Innovation Conference" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Lino Mirgeler | Picture Alliance | Getty Images"/>
Two internets could emerge in the next five years — one led by China and one led by the United States — a top venture capitalist has predicted, adding to a growing chorus of voices suggesting such a development could take place.
The concept has been dubbed the &#8220;splinternet,&#8221; and it refers to a future in which the internet is fragmented, governed by separate regulations and run by different services. 
A unified definition is still unclear, but one suggestion is that the future could see Chinese and American apps and services each dominate half of the internet. That concept was the topic of much discussion at the 
World Economic Forum 
 in Davos, Switzerland, last month.
And while there may be two internets coming, &#8220;it will not be China and the rest of the world. It will be China and countries that adopt Chinese apps, and countries that adopt American apps,&#8221; Kaifu Lee, the CEO of China-based venture capital firm Sinovation Ventures, told CNBC at Davos.
&#8220;While Chinese apps will have a hard time getting adopted in U.S. and Europe and English-speaking countries, I think they&#8217;re proving their rapid acceptance in India, Southeast Asia, South America, Middle East and even a little bit in Africa . So I think in five years, if you look at all the people in the world that took their phone and counted how many Chinese apps and American apps, I&#8217;d say it would be fifty-fifty,&#8221; added Lee, who prior to his current job was the head of China for GoogleGOOGL.
Indeed, companies like AlibabaBABA and Tencent700-HK are already expanding their services abroad and acquiring or investing in companies across Asia. For example, Alibaba 
owns a majority stake 
 in Southeast Asian e-commerce firm Lazada, while Tencent has an investment in Indonesian ride-hailing firm Go-Jek. Chinese technology giants are continually looking to spread their tentacles abroad.
Lee is among a number of voices predicting that a so-called splinternet will come into being. Last year, former Google CEO 
Eric Schmidt said he foresaw 
 a &#8220;bifurcation into a Chinese-led internet, and a non-Chinese internet led by America.&#8221;
Is China taking the lead on AI?
The United States and China are battling for dominance not just when it comes to the internet, but other, interrelated technologies 
including 5G 
 and 
artificial intelligence 
.
AI in particular is a technology that is seen as crucial to supporting future industries and one that will partly shape the way the internet looks in the future. AI is a broad term that encompasses the development of algorithms that are able to adapt and learn, which could boost the automation of many tasks. AI can be applied to many industries globally.
A number of commentators have suggested the U.S. could be behind China in the AI race. That includes Fred Kempe, CEO of U.S. think tank the Atlantic Council, who 
said in a CNBC op-ed 
 that &#8220;China was on track to take the commanding heights of AI and that the consequences could be historic in nature.&#8221;
Lee said that right now, the U.S. is stronger in AI research, while China is moving forward with the actual implementation of artificial intelligence technology. But that could change very soon.
&#8220;It&#8217;s (China) arguably ahead of U.S. in some areas behind in others, maybe neck and neck. But at the current trajectory, China will probably be ahead of U.S. in five years,&#8221; Lee said.
&#8220;China has more data, more users, more usage per data. And there&#8217;s very pro-AI government policies. So these things cause China to be ahead in AI implementation, despite not being ahead in AI research,&#8221; he added.
The government of the world&#8217;s second-largest economy emphasized the development of AI in its &#8220;Made in China 2025&#8221; plan — the country&#8217;s official blueprint for dominating various areas of technology in the future. And in 2017, China laid out plans which it hopes will make it the 
world leader in AI by 2030 
.
Both the U.S. and China have been aggressive in developing AI, and recent findings show a split between the U.S and China when it comes to patent filings. 
A study from the U.N. World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) published last week found that American firms IBMIBM and MicrosoftMSFT are the two organizations in the world with the most AI-related patent filings. But among research groups and universities, Chinese organizations hold 17 of the top 20 spots in terms of total patent filings.
WATCH: What is 5G?

The ‘splinternet’: How China and the US could divide the internet for the rest of the world

Dr. Michael Ivanovitch
Source: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/03/the-us-needs-to-clean-up-its-monetary-excesses-and-twin-deficits.html">The US needs to clean up its monetary excesses and twin deficits</a>
<ul>
<li>The world is moving on, but America is still nursing the deep wounds of the last financial crisis.</li>
<li>Allowing higher U.S. inflation rates, as some Fed officials advocate, would be the ultimate disaster.</li>
<li>A meaningful decline of U.S. trade deficits would give an impetus to growth at a time when the scope for economy’s fiscal and monetary support has virtually vanished.</li>
</ul>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cdn.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/03170230/105555867-1541518638400gettyimages-1058088256.1910x1000.jpeg" alt="US-POLITICS-VOTE" height="1000" width="1910" data-licensor-name="Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images"/>
Global talking forums, such as the G-20, show that unhelpful rhetoric and an allegedly obstructionist behavior in official international organizations are not the way to advance America&#8217;s interests. Those organizations have been built and underwritten by America at some of its finest hours of enlightened world leadership.
Washington neocons, famously seeking a &#8220;full-spectrum global dominance,&#8221; will not be the only people to note, with a tinge of sadness, that a real &#8220;program&#8221; speech for the G-20 was delivered last Friday at a Buenos Aires summit by China President Xi Jinping. They will also shake their heads in disbelief seeing that the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit, on the same day, ripped the West&#8217;s addiction to indiscriminate sanctions warfare, while urging constructive multilateral relations and a regulatory update of the World Trade Organization.
All that is a world away from the first G-20 summit in Washington, D.C., in November 2008 at the height of the global financial crisis that ushered in the Great Recession.
The U.S. is still nursing the deep wounds of that epochal debacle.
Come to terms with crisis legacy
The Fed&#8217;s monetary base (M0) has skyrocketed from $820 billion in early 2008 to $3.5 trillion as of the last reserve reporting date on Nov. 21, 2018. Over the same period, excess reserves in the U.S. banking sector, funds banks can readily lend out, have followed a similar path from monthly averages of $1.5 to $2 billion to an astounding $1.7 trillion.
That extraordinary monetary creation is what it took to keep the U.S. economy afloat.
America&#8217;s fiscal picture is even more worrying — and literally getting worse by the day. The price of bailing out the U.S. economy has been a near doubling of the gross public debt from 64 percent of GDP in 2007 to 105.5 percent at this writing. And the debt is on an unstoppable upward trend as the public sector budget deficit continues to widen toward 5 percent of GDP.
The U.S. external deficits predate the financial crisis as a problem reflecting America&#8217;s low savings rates, and free-trade policies in a world of mercantilists free-riding on the American economy. As a result, Washington&#8217;s net foreign debt at the end of the second quarter of this year shot up to $8.6 trillion, an increase of $891.2 billion from the previous three-month period. By the end of this year, the fresh new liabilities to the rest of the world are likely to rise by an additional half-a-trillion dollars.
Clearly, errors of trade policy can&#8217;t be blamed on the rest of the world. America&#8217;s trading partners simply took advantage of the country&#8217;s open markets and its growing purchasing power.
Fixing monetary excesses and the twin deficits is a difficult work-in-progress, where screaming and kicking rear ends, as one U.S. official boasted recently, cannot be substitutes for effective economic policies.
To start with, leave 
the Fed 
 alone to operate as it sees fit, but hold it to account for the impact of its policy choices on growth, employment and price stability. Fed officials who believe that solutions lie in allowing higher inflation rates will probably get a briefing by their colleagues, or the central bank&#8217;s economists, about the wisdom of such a policy option.
Surplus addicts should follow the South Korean example
Price stability is a precious public good — a situation where investment decisions and contractual relationships are made under assumptions of stable prices, because the monetary authorities are trusted to deliver a stable purchasing power of the currency they manage. It&#8217;s something like the German Bundesbank before the monetary union, where no German politician would dare talk about the monetary policy, and where it would be unthinkable that a Buba official would ever publicly urge higher inflation rates.
Fiscal policies are a question of national priorities. The U.S. debt and deficit numbers are clear — and they are not good. Budget constraints must be respected. There is a political and market sanction if they are not. The Fed&#8217;s independence also means that it should never validate unreasonable fiscal policy choices. Normally, fiscal and monetary policies must be closely coordinated to deliver a noninflationary policy mix for a steady and sustainable growth.
A benign neglect of trade deficits is an equally serious policy blunder. Those deficits are a subtraction from American GDP. They are wealth transfers to trade partners and sources of American foreign debt because deficits have to be covered by U.S. debt instruments in exchange for foreign savings.
For almost two years, Washington has been in a virtual state of siege because the Chinese, the Japan and the Europeans don&#8217;t care about threats and taunts. Those economies are piling on their U.S. trade surpluses with abandon.
It should not take a dinner on Argentinian beef and a big delegation to convince the Chinese president to do &#8220;something&#8221; about his soaring U.S. trade surpluses. Xi knows he has a $400 billion trade problem with the U.S., and he knows that he needs to get that down. But Xi has been given a wonderful grace period because he has to negotiate Washington&#8217;s requests to stop forced technology transfers, illegal intellectual property acquisitions, illegal export subsidies, etc.
The solution here is simple. Washington should ask Beijing for a prompt reduction of its trade deficit. How China does that is its own choice.
Think it can&#8217;t actually be done that way? Well, in the first nine months of this year, South Korea slashed its U.S. trade surplus 22.3 percent, after a 17 percent cut for last year as a whole. That is a respectful gesture of a true friend and ally: A 39.3 percent surplus cut since U.S. President Donald Trump took office.
The others can do that too, but the truth is the Chinese, the Japanese and the Europeans don&#8217;t want to do it.
And the U.S. should not leave it to the Chinese to change the structural problems. American companies should be prohibited from allowing forced technology transfers, or other forms of intellectual property thefts. Cyber-enabled thefts should be dealt with appropriate technologies that America has. Bilateral market access and investment practices should be matters of strict reciprocity, or as a Scorsese drama character would put it: &#8220;Same to you, fellas.&#8221;
Investment thoughts
Washington is mixing up trade problems with other agendas involving China, Japan and Europe. That&#8217;s been a non-starter for two years now. U.S. trade deficits with those economies continue to grow. On current policies, there is no end in sight.
The huge, and increasing, trade deficits are dampeners of U.S. economic growth at a time when the scope for supportive monetary and fiscal policies has practically vanished. A meaningful reduction of America&#8217;s nearly trillion-dollar trade deficits would spur growth of import competing industries. There would also be new wealth creation if foreign imports were to be replaced by products and services generated through foreign direct investments in U.S.-based production facilities.

Germany automobile manufacturers will be talking about such investments in Washington this week. They should get all the help they need to set an example of how excessive imbalances in automobile trades, and beyond, are being brought down by local manufacturing.
U.S. growth prospects would brighten considerably if Washington could get a substantial relief on the trade front — and provided the Fed continues to focus firmly on price stability.

Commentary by Michael Ivanovitch, an independent analyst focusing on world economy, geopolitics and investment strategy. He served as a senior economist at the OECD in Paris, international economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and taught economics at Columbia Business School.

The US needs to clean up its monetary excesses and twin deficits

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Rwandan government in partnership with the Japanese government has unveiled a new power substation that was built under the joint project to upgrade electricity transmission and distribution networks in the country. CNBC Africa’s Steven Muvunyi was on ground to compile this report.

New power station to stabilise Rwanda’s electricity supply

Dr. Michael Ivanovitch
Source: <a href="http://https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/23/the-us-is-losing-an-unassailable-600-billion-trade-case--commentary.html">The US is losing an unassailable $600 billion trade case</a>
<ul>
<li>With their growing surpluses on American trades, China, Japan and the European Union are defying U.S. trade policies — and getting away with it.</li>
<li>China says it is &#8220;locked and loaded&#8221; to &#8220;fight to the end&#8221; on its trade issues with the U.S.</li>
<li>German Chancellor Angela Merkel&#8217;s upcoming visit to Washington should be used to make an example-setting deal for a new architecture of fair and reciprocal trade.</li>
</ul>
Before coming to Florida last week to talk trade, plan out East Asian security and play a round of golf, Japan&#8217;s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe kicked off in Tokyo a series of meetings with China visiting State Councillor Wang Yi.
The meetings were set to strengthen the Sino-Japanese &#8220;strategic relationship of mutual benefit,&#8221; to expand a $300 billion bilateral trade and to increase further the flow of 7.3 million Chinese visitors to Japan.
Abe also welcomed the impending visit to Japan of China&#8217;s Premier Li Keqiang to (a) set up a trilateral free trade area with China and South Korea, (b) conclude the agreement on an East Asian Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, (c) join China&#8217;s erstwhile shunned <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/104958552?__source=cnbcafrica|inline|story|&amp;par=cnbcafrica &amp;doc="> 
Belt and Road 
</a> infrastructure projects, (d) promote multilateral trade and (e) fight trade protectionism.
Clear messages, aren&#8217;t they?
And then, while in Florida, Abe insisted on keeping the U.S.-Japan trade in a broad multilateral framework, fearing that President Donald Trump preference for a bilateral deal would make a big dent in Japan&#8217;s $68.8 billion trade surplus on American trades.
<h4>China should golf instead of spoiling for a fight</h4>
Promising to Trump an &#8220;honest trade relationship,&#8221; Abe asked him to include Pyongyang&#8217;s short- and medium-range missiles in the forthcoming disarmament negotiations, and to get back to Japan the people North Koreans allegedly abducted.
I wonder whether he also told Trump that Japan&#8217;s high-ranking officials from foreign, defense and other government agencies were conducting consultations in Sendai, Japan last Thursday and Friday with their Chinese counterparts on contested maritime borders in the South China Sea. That comes close on the heels of a similar meeting in Shanghai last December, showing that a Sino-Japanese &#8220;strategic relationship of mutual benefit&#8221; may be heating up while Tokyo feels secure under the U.S. defense umbrella and enjoys full access to American markets.
China is not interested in the bourgeois game of golfing. No, Beijing says it is &#8220;locked and loaded&#8221; to retaliate and &#8220;fight to the end&#8221; in what it sees as an unfolding &#8220;trade war&#8221; with America.
That is an interesting negotiating posture for a country that ran a $375 billion trade surplus with the U.S. last year. And this year could be much worse. The American trade deficit with China in January and February was running at an annual rate of $391.2 billion — a 20 percent increase over the same period of 2017.
In spite of that, there is nothing in China&#8217;s official statements to indicate that Beijing intends to bring those surpluses down. One can only see a belligerent defiance, promises to open up, to cling to multilateral trade and to pursue a &#8220;win-win cooperation.&#8221;
Will Washington settle for that? Or is Trump ready to make good on his promise to give China a pass on trade for help with North Korea nukes?
<h4>Merkel for a Mar-a-Lago weekend</h4>
If true, that would be a huge mistake. There are no trade offs here. Beijing will not sell North Korea down the river in exchange for Trump&#8217;s leniency on large, and growing, trade deficits with China. And neither will China suffocate Pyongyang for Washington&#8217;s favors, whatever those might be.
Pyongyang said it is suspending nuclear and ballistic missile tests on a site that had reportedly become unusable. It also claims that no further tests are necessary — presumably for now. What will follow — if all goes well — is a long negotiating process where China will support North Korea&#8217;s demands for iron-clad security guarantees and the dismantling of the sanctions regime in exchange for gradual measures of nuclear disarmament.
There are no ultimatums for quick fixes here. There is only a devilishly difficult, long and uncertain high-stakes bargaining among actors deeply suspicious of each other&#8217;s sincerity and intentions.
But let&#8217;s get back to the trade issue. Even on a heroic assumption that the expected U.S.-North Korean summit, midwifed by China, is a resounding success, Washington still could not ignore the size and the pace of increase of its trade deficit with Beijing.
The European Union, for its part, is also threatening retaliations in spite of a $151.4 billion trade surplus with the U.S. last year.
The silver lining is that German Chancellor Angela Merkel knows better. She dispatched her vice chancellor to Washington last week to talk trade and prepare the ground for her one-day visit to the White House on Friday, April 27.
Trump would do well to show more understanding for EU trades and more warmth for Merkel. About one-fifth of American exports go to the EU. In January and February, the U.S. sales to the EU were growing at an annual rate of 9 percent — while falling 1.5 percent to China. Over the same period, American exports to Germany soared 12 percent.
Germany may not oblige its estranged cousin Trump with Chevys on its autobahns, but show more courtesy and extend Merkel&#8217;s Friday visit for a Mar-a-Lago weekend, and you might see a flood of sun-starved Germans to Florida. Also, keep in mind that Germans believe &#8220;alte Liebe rostet nicht&#8221; – old love does not rust.
<h4>Investment thoughts</h4>
China, Japan and the EU are defying Trump&#8217;s trade policies — and are getting away with it. Last year, on Trump&#8217;s watch, they ran a combined $595.4 billion surplus on their American trades — a 5.8 percent increase from 2016.
And things are now getting worse. With the U.S. domestic demand revving up a bit, America&#8217;s trade gap this year could be much wider. In January and February, the U.S. trade deficit with those three large economic systems, accounting for about 40 percent of world&#8217;s demand and output, was running at an annual rate of $612.3 billion, a 3 percent increase from the same period of 2017.
What can Washington do?
First, stop threatening. But do make sure that everybody understands the U.S. won&#8217;t be the dumping ground of the world, with systematic losses of wealth, jobs and proprietary technology.
Second, make a deal with Germany to cut U.S. trade deficits by boosting American exports to the EU while replacing a significant part of imports with products generated by European companies in their U.S. production facilities.
Japan would follow suit by stepping up supplies from its U.S.-based manufacturing outlets. But whether Tokyo will open up its markets to American goods and services will depend on Washington&#8217;s implementation of rules of reciprocity.
Third, watching all this, China would understand that it has to cooperate, provided Washington stops linking strategic security issues with what Beijing should normally do as a responsible world trader.
Remember, the Chinese realize that no trade concession on their part can wish away acute U.S.-China questions, such as Taiwan, contested maritime borders in the South China Sea, the sequels to the Korean War and &#8220;strategically competitive&#8221; issues in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond.
Talk reciprocal nickels and dimes with Beijing, and make sure that the people we call our friends and allies are following the same approach. The U.S. can&#8217;t have monumental trade issues with China while its closest allies are flocking to Beijing for lucrative &#8220;golden era&#8221; relationships. If that continues, Washington will be left holding the bag.
The Chinese are in an untenable situation where they live off their main trade partners while advocating globalization, multilateralism and the empty shell of &#8220;win-win cooperation.&#8221; If they continue on that path, they will discredit China&#8217;s remarkable achievements accomplished over decades of hard and smart work to save, produce and sell to willing buyers around the world.

Commentary by Michael Ivanovitch, an independent analyst focusing on world economy, geopolitics and investment strategy. He served as a senior economist at the OECD in Paris, international economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and taught economics at Columbia Business School.

The US is losing an unassailable $600 billion trade case

Abidjan, 15 March 2018 – The President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, has commended the Government of Japan for its strong support of the Bank and its multi-billion economic transformation partnership with Africa. Adesina identified the private sector, energy and infrastructure development as key sectors that have benefited from Japan’s support.
Speaking at the Nobel Prize Dialogue in Yokohama as a global expert on food, agriculture and development, the President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina highlighted huge business opportunities for Japanese investment in the agribusiness sector. He also emphasised the strategic importance of two new initiatives: The Transformation of the African Savannah Initiative (TASI) and the bank’s Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) programme for scaling up agricultural technologies for millions of farmers. Both initiatives are aimed at reducing Africa’s widening and increasingly expensive net food trade deficit.
Adesina emphasized the importance of good nutrition, especially for young mothers and babies, and said Africa’s most important infrastructure is “the grey matter infrastructure” of babies and young children. “Stunted children today mean stunted economies tomorrow”, said Adesina, who is championing a continent-wide initiative to end the burden of malnutrition in Africa &#8211; the African Leaders for Nutrition (ALN)
During his official visit to Japan, Adesina met top officials, including Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso, Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs, Masatsugu Asakawa, key Government Ministers, and stakeholders, to consider issues of mutual concern.
Speaking at the meetings, President Adesina recalled the Bank’s long, close and friendly relationship with the Government of Japan. He commended Japan for committing $6 billion to fund energy projects in Africa through the Japan Africa Energy Initiative facility, which allows Africa to access Japanese technologies and expertise.
He described the recently signed $6 billion Japan-Africa Energy Financing Facility as “a product of the personal engagement and close relationship the Bank has with African Ambassadors resident in Japan, as well as a special relationship between the Bank and the Government of Japan.”
Adesina assured Japanese officials that the Bank’s planned General Capital Increase would predominantly benefit Africa’s lower income countries.
During meetings with executives of the Toyota Tsusho Corporation, the Africa-Japan Relations Committee, the Japanese Association of Corporate Executives, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the African Development Bank made a case for enhanced private sector participation in Africa’s development and new methods of financing.
According to Adesina, “the Africa Investment Forum (AIF), scheduled for November 7-9, 2018 in Johannesburg, South Africa, is an ideal platform for this new approach to funding projects in Africa. Through the Africa Investment Forum, the bank and other partner multilateral development banks will create a platform for bankable projects, investment financing, and opportunities for growing infrastructure investment across Africa.
“The Africa Investment Forum is a 100% totally transactional platform, where deals will be concretized and executed. I expect the platform to become Africa’s premier investment marketplace.”
During meetings with Japan’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Kazuyuki Nakane, the bank shared its keen interest in co-organizing the 2018 Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VII) in Yokohama, in order to strengthen business ties between Japan and Africa.
Adesina also commended the African diplomatic community in Japan for its prominent role in promoting business and investment between Japan and Africa. “On account of your work, the business ties and understandings between Japan and Africa have never been stronger.”
Numerous African Ambassadors in Japan commended the Bank for strongly supporting Africa’s business development. Ambassador Jérôme Kloh Weya of Cote d’Ivoire conveyed his country’s appreciation for the African Development Bank’s role in refinancing Air Cote d’Ivoire in 2017, and for opening up bright prospects for business opportunities in the West African region.

AfDB commends Japan’s multi-billion economic transformation partnership with Africa

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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says North Korea&#8217;s missile launch over Japan is an &#8216;unprecedented&#8217; threat. Joining CNBC Africa to talk about the biggest global news today is Dylan Bester, Director, Phoenix Private Wealth International.

North Korea fires missile over Japan

Brazilian miner Vale SA said on Monday it has wrapped up the sale of a stake in Mozambique&#8217;s Moatize coal project to Japan&#8217;s Mitsui &amp; Co Ltd and received an initial payment of $733 million, the company said in a security filing.
The remainder of the $770 million transaction will be paid after the financing for the project is concluded, Vale said.
The Japanese company acquired 15 percent of Vale&#8217;s 95 percent share in the coal mine. It is also buying 50 percent of Vale&#8217;s 70 percent stake in the Nacala logistics corridor, a railway system connecting production at the mine to the Nacala port in Mozambique.
Vale said it expects to receive by the end of this month an initial payment of $733 million from Mitsui from the equity sale. The company said it would receive $2.7 billion more after the financing for the project of the mine and the transportation system is concluded.
Vale has been in talks with Mitsui over the Moatize mine for almost three years. The firms previously had said any payments or the conclusion of the deal would only take place once financing for the mine and the transportation system was sealed.
Mitsui will have an option to transfer back to Vale the stake in the project if financing is not completed by December.
(Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Editing by Diane Craft and Bill Trott)
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